GAINESVILLE, Fla.-- Florida's offensive line will look different in 2019.
The Gators will need to replace four starters on the line from last year's squad and it's not going to be an overnight fix.
"I mean, there’s a lot of youth and inexperience in that group," Dan Mullen said on Tuesday. "That’s one that it’s going to take a little bit of time for those guys."
"It’s fun for me to go back and you really go back to the teaching, to really the fundamentals and being very descriptive for the kids to learn the base fundamentals and all the things they have to learn from the start," said John Hevesy. "It even helps you with the other guys that were here to go back to them and really learn the concepts and schemes, for them how to learn."
Florida has a few linemen that have seen game time experience. Stone Forsythe, Brett Heggie, Nick Buchanan, Chris Bleich, Jean Delance, Richard Gouraige and Noah Banks have all seen the field. However, Banks has been sidelined with a vertigo medical condition that saw him collapse during bowl practice.
"That's something we've got to get cleared and make sure he's healthy first," said Hevesy about Banks' recovery. "He's progressed very well since the end of the season. Just when the doctor says go, go. That's between him and his family, his doctors will sit down and talk. Once he's healthy he can go."
The Gators are left with fewer options on the line this spring with both Banks and Griffin McDowell sidelined, which means the early enrollees are getting their opportunities.
With four true freshmen rotating in with the second team, Mullen and Hevesy are not expecting an overnight transformation. The Gators have summer workouts and fall camp to iron things out.
"There’s installs going on and I looked out with one series with the twos and there’s a redshirt freshman and four basically high school kids out there running with the two huddle," Mullen said. "They’re in their third install in three practices and going against defenses that are probably well advanced of anything they’ve ever seen before."
The good news for the Gators is that the coaches are excited about the pieces. Florida has signed 11 offensive linemen in the last two classes.
"I’ve thought especially young guys have picked it up a little bit faster but I think that happens a lot when they’re forced to play up," said Mullen. "When young guys are forced to play with the ones or the twos and with other players around them there’s that kind of sense of urgency and they end up picking things up quicker. I think they’ve done a great job."
The line is young but not without their leaders. Brett Heggie is one that has stepped up this offseason.
“The first thing I’ve seen in him is good leadership," said Hevesy about Heggie. "That started really with him in January with him being a leader of the group because he started a bunch of games two years ago and played back and forth between being injured last year. But you see the leadership, really him and Stone and Nick Buchanan, you see them taking the leadership role.
"And even Jean during more of it. And you see Richard Gouraige and Chris who have been here only a year and are still freshmen. But you see them taking ownership with the four high school guys that are here that don’t know if it’s blowing or all their stuff right now. They’re figuring it out. They’re doing a great job just because they’re, again, they’re getting better and progressing each day. Now all I care about is those guys to get out of here with fundamentals and little bit of understanding.”
Last season Tyler Jordan was Florida's utility player on the line. With his departure, Hevesy will look to Bleich and Heggie to take up different roles.
"Chris and Brett can both be centers. I haven't put them in snaps yet, but they both snaps. Obviously guards, and Chris has played some tackle. We have a bunch of guys that haven't (cross-trained) yet just because we're doing installation," stated Hevesy. "As we get toward the end I'll start playing with some guys, just doing different things. I'm going to try to get eight ready for a game, so someone's got to be ready to go at different positions."
Although it's early days, Hevesy is excited about the potential with this unit.
“I think it’s very good. Very good," said Hevesy about this unit's potential. "To me, we’re four days in, but they haven’t because I think the one thing is they’re all eager to learn and they’re learning, they’ll all making progress on Day 4. Again, there’s going to be a dip somewhere here again. But to be making progress as far as you see they’re taking coaching, from yesterday’s film to today you see the progress. We have to get better on tomorrow’s film to walk out here Thursday and it has to keep going that way through the spring and obviously through the summer.”
We'll learn "a lot more when pads go on," Mullen said.
"I think they’ve done a great job. We’ll get into install four today. It’s not like it’s slowing down and (I'm eager) to see when they hit that mental wall."
Gator Chomps:
Impressions of Ethan White and his potential?
"Good, I mean we'll see. I hate saying anything in day four, I think you just see they have the ability. I just want them to have the ability, have to learn it, it's just catching up to speed and getting the game to slow down for all those kids. And even the redshirt freshman, get the game to slow down. And that's just gonna be them film study and just constantly, like you see them out there working now, working after practice to work on the little things they need to work on to catch up."
On Delance
"He's athletic. Great feet, he's got power. He's just got to learn to play with power, play lower and play to his legs than play upper-body strength. Doing those things, just learning, him and Stone both, to bend at that edge position."
